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September 22, 2006
Studio 60 and the Business of Entertainment
I could also file this under making a living. I'm back safely in L.A. and dealing with a one industry town. It's odd that that one industry is entertainment. Entertainment should be laughing and crying and having a good time. Instead, it's number crunching and outrageously high and low salaries and LaLa land.
Through the art of DVR, I watched Studio 60 tonight. It was noted that the show is West Wing on a teevee set. Which was obvious to me - I've seen a few Sports Nights and know that he is a one formula man. It's a good formula, but it is a bit tiring; especially if you're not fully engaged in the industry he's poking fun at.
But how can you not enjoy the biz here in LA? If Amanda Peet can be a studio boss, then surely I could make it as a producer, right? These are the thoughts that flutter through your head when you live in LaLa land.
In other news, I was disappointed that scenes from the previews of Grey's Anatomy will be seen in the second ep, not the first. And ER was off to a banging start...except that most of its bangs were predictable. I did think Jerry was going to die - since he's the bartender on that crappy new show, Men in Trees. Yes, I succumbed to watching the first ep, but only because it came on after Dancing with the Stars; I'm not tuning in on Fridays (or DVR'ing it). Why do Jewish mothers always have to be annoying on television? Do the writers really hate their mothers that much? Although, I gotta say shiva on Grey's Anatomy was good; except for the wearing dirty clothes and sitting close to the floor part. How am I to believe that an Asian woman seriously partook in a more Orthodox version of my religion than I have ever been involved in? But the food, annoying relatives, and seven days without work part does make a helluva lot of sense. This nonsensical rambling is ending now. G'night!
Posted by cj at 01:30 AM | Comments (0)
September 21, 2006
World Renown Cinematographer, Sven Nykvist, Passes On
Nykvist was the genius standing beside Ingmar Bergman during many of his masterpieces. He's one of the best cinematographers of all time and you really don't need any technical knowledge of lighting to know that - just watch Fanny and Alexander.
Chris Fujiwara wrote about a retrospective of Nkyvist's work at the Harvard Film Archive in May, 2000 in the Boston Phoenix. Here's a great graph:
In Light Keeps Me Company (2000; May 19 at 7 p.m., May 21 at 6 p.m., and May 30 at 7 p.m.), an intimate documentary made by son Carl-Gustaf Nykvist, Bergman says: "Sven and I saw things alike, thought things alike; our feeling for light was the same. We had the same basic moral positions about camera placement." The closeness between the two makes it difficult to isolate Nykvist's contribution to Bergman's work, especially since Bergman's own concept of cinema was changing at about the same time Nykvist became his regular cinematographer. Yet it's reasonable to assume that the visual purity, restraint, and naturalism that distinguish Nykvist's camerawork on Winter Light and Persona (1966; May 20 at 7 p.m.) from the more flamboyant work of Gunnar Fischer on The Seventh Seal (1957), Wild Strawberries (1957), and The Magician (1958) owe as much to Nykvist's genius as to Bergman's maturing temperament.I love the idea of being so passionate about your art that you can have a "moral position about camera placement."
Nykvist had a long illness and was being treated for aphasia, a form of dementia. It saddens me that such an amazing artistic genius suffered at the end of his life. I hope he rests in peace.
Obit round-up:
"Sven Nykvist, 83; Cinematographer Won Oscars for Work With Bergman," by Chris Lee in the LA Times
"Sven Nykvist, 83, a Master of Light in Films, Dies," by Stephen Holden in the NY Times
Sven Nykvist: Distinguished Swedish cinematographer who collaborated with Ingmar Bergman and other European and Hollywood luminaries," by The Times (of London)
"Soulful eye: Sven Nykvist uses the screen as his canvas," by Chris Fujiwara in the May 18-25, 2000 edition of the Boston Phoenix
Posted by cj at 09:22 PM | Comments (0)
September 18, 2006
The Truth About MySpace
Caught in Between pointed out the Top 25 Worst Sites according to PC World. The magazine's description of MySpace is so good that I feel compelled to quote it in its entirety.
Worst Sites #1Alas, I succumbed to the "need" for a MySpace profile. At first, I was looking for a free way to do internet dating (goaded on by a friend who was using it for that purpose). Then, my friends started migrating there from Friendster. I really don't use it that often and I completely agree that it's a horrible site - it's even hard to load one page from it at a time. Which is why, unlike some of my friends, my blogs will never be hosted by a networking site.
1. MySpace.comYes, we know. With more than 90 million users, MySpace is now more popular than Elvis, "American Idol," and ice cream. But the Web's most visited destination is also its most poorly designed and counterproductive.
The ease with which anyone of any age can create a page, upload photos, share deeply personal details of their lives, and make new "friends" quickly turned MySpace into a one-stop shopping mall for online predators. That in turn has made the site an easy target for politicians who pander for votes by playing on parental fears. In an era when the basic tenets of the Net are under attack by both Ma Bell and Uncle Sam, MySpace is a headache we don't need.
But let's put all that aside for a moment. Graphically, many MySpace pages look like a teenager's bedroom after a tornado--a swirl of clashing backgrounds, boxes stacked inside other boxes, massive photos, and sonic disturbance. Try loading a few of those pages at once and watch what happens to your CPU. Watch out for spyware, too, since it turns out that MySpace has become a popular distribution vector for drive-by downloads and other exploits. And in a place where "U are soooooooo hot!!!" passes for wit, MySpace isn't doing much to elevate the level of social discourse.
In response to a public backlash and some well-publicized lawsuits, MySpace has begun modifying its policies--for example, limiting adults' ability to contact minors. That's hardly enough. Requiring some kind of authentication from MySpacers--or their parents--to validate their ages and identities would go a long way toward scaring off the creeps and making the site a kinder, gentler social network.
Is MySpace totally bad? Not at all. Are we old farts? Yeah, probably. But the Web's most popular site needs a serious security reboot. And probably a makeover. Until then, MySpace won't ever be OurSpace.
Posted by cj at 07:13 PM | Comments (0)
September 12, 2006
"The Cubicle"
"The Cubicle" is a hilarious parody of "You're Beautiful," another James Blunt song. Go watch the music video on Yahoo now. Of course, the song / video have nothing to do with my personal views on work. I just like them for their artistic value.
Tip o the hat to Camille for sending me the link.
Posted by cj at 04:37 PM | Comments (0)
September 05, 2006
Goodbye My Lover...
I've heard many great songs recently. But none have touched me quite as deeply as this one by James Blunt. Thanks to a repeat Oprah show durin my packing spree, I'm hooked on this haunting British singer songerwriter whom the rest of the world picked up on at least a year ago.
Did I disappoint you or let you down?When Blunt was introducing the song on Oprah, he kept referring to it as "miserable." Indeed it is. I've listened to many an unrequited love song (India Arie's new album has some of the best), but nothing is as complete and authentic as this one.
Should I be feeling guilty or let the judges frown?
'Cause I saw the end before we'd begun,
Yes I saw you were blinded and I knew I had won.
So I took what's mine by eternal right.
Took your soul out into the night.
It may be over but it won't stop there,
I am here for you if you'd only care.
You touched my heart you touched my soul.
You changed my life and all my goals.
And love is blind and that I knew when,
My heart was blinded by you.
I've kissed your lips and held your head.
Shared your dreams and shared your bed.
I know you well, I know your smell.
I've been addicted to you.Goodbye my lover.
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one.
You have been the one for me.I am a dreamer and when I wake,
You can't break my spirit - it's my dreams you take.
And as you move on, remember me,
Remember us and all we used to be
I've seen you cry, I've seen you smile.
I've watched you sleeping for a while.
I'd be the father of your child.
I'd spend a lifetime with you.
I know your fears and you know mine.
We've had our doubts but now we're fine,
And I love you, I swear that's true.
I cannot live without you.Goodbye my lover.
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one.
You have been the one for me.And I still hold your hand in mine.
In mine when I'm asleep.
And I will bear my soul in time,
When I'm kneeling at your feet.
Goodbye my lover.
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one.
You have been the one for me.
I'm so hollow, baby, I'm so hollow.
I'm so, I'm so, I'm so hollow.
I can't wait for the new experiences waiting in LaLa land.
lyrics courtesy of Seek Lyrics.
Posted by cj at 01:04 AM | Comments (1)
Live from Omaha
Doesn't matter how many times I pack and move, I still suck at it. I'm also unclear why expensive household appliances are the things I chuck from my over full car. Oh well. Not like I'm movin into my own flat right off, so I wont need a coffee maker, toaster, or iron anytime soon.
Live from Omaha, Nebraska
I'm hear to tell you that I-80 is a beautiful drive through verdant, lush land. I could've stopped to see the bridges of Madison County, but since I never read the book or saw the movie I was just amused and reminded of a clip on the nightly news about the uptick in tourism surrounding the book / movie.
Posted by cj at 01:00 AM | Comments (0)